Seaworld Research Paper

Since its establishment in 1964 the world famous franchise SeaWorld has been subjected to various tabloid headlines and legal investigations following the horrendous attacks by orcas, also known by their more apt name ‘Killer Whales’. These incident range from minor to major, but, there has been rare cases of fatalities from the family orientated marine parks based in America.

SeaWorld’s claim is that the average lifespan an orca whale is 25-30 years. “Orca whales tend to live a lot longer in captivity because they have all the veterinary care - in the wild, they live less.” That is false. According to the National Geographic, wild Orca whales live to be around 50-80 years old with some living to see 100 years. Marine biology research has proven that orcas in captivity suffer from extreme stress, injuries, disease and infections. These effects take a toll on an orca whales body and immune system. SeaWorld and other marine parks lack ability to provide adequate environments to keep orcas alive. Another common threat found in captive orcas is a floppy dorsal fin. According to SeaWorld, “A floppy dorsal fin is normal, twenty-five percent of whales have a fin that turns over or flops as they get older; it is a sign of the wise.” That too, is a lie. A flopped dorsal fin is a sign of a depression. Dorsal collapse in the wild happens in less than one percent of orca whales. Generally, orca whales tend to be the most free, discovered animals on our great world today. Animal activists say that “Orcas have a great spiritual power, they are not to be meddled with; orcas aren’t just respected, they are in charge.” Artificial, manmade belief puts shame to the respected power and beauty of an orca

She was forty when SeaWorld killed her. Dawn Brancheau took blunt force trauma to the head, neck, and torso before drowning. The SeaWorld trainer died doing what she loved, which was interacting with orcas. The killer whale, Tilikum, attacked her.

Orcas are forced to live in tight quarters together; they have nowhere to escape conflict. This results in anxiety and tension leading to fights between orcas and their trainers. For example, in February 2010, Dawn Brancheau was pulled underwater and killed by a killer whale named Tilikum. “The 40-year-old trainer was at ease with the killer whale and had just petted him on the nose” (ABC News 2010). Orcas have social rules that prohibit violence against one another, if a fight were to occur, they can find the space to flee. Unfortunately for Dawn, Tilikum didn’t have the space he needed and lashed out. Also, injuries caused by their “family” only occur in captivity; fights rarely occur in their natural environment. Although orcas naturally eat seals, penguins, and squids, these animals only become “killer” whales in captivity. Can you blame these amazingly intelligent and emotional creatures for being frustrated with their confinement?

“All whales in captivity have a bad life. They’re all emotionally destroyed. They’re all psychologically traumatized. So they’re ticking time bombs.” This is a statement by Lori Marino from the documentary, Blackfish. Many statements like this one are common and believed to be true due to the proof that the documentary provides. There are many incidents that prove Orcas, also known as Killer Whales, are harmed in captivity and that their trainers are often harmed because of this, too. Orcas should not be kept in captivity since it is harmful to both Orcas and humans.

For many years, we’ve been going to such places like, SeaWorld, and Six Flags, to see vast animals, like Orcas, also known as the killer whale, which we wouldn’t normally see out in the wild. Orcas have been around for millions of years; it’s known to be one of the smartest mammals, closest to humans. Since of their friendliness, people have taken advantage of them. For the past sixty years people have brought these massive creatures into their aquariums to make profit out of it, but never thought about their lives. What if you were kept in a cage for years, and was pushed to do such activities, you wouldn’t do in your normal life. While being in captivities, killer whales are forced to do plentiful tricks, which they normally wouldn’t do

As a young child there has been so many commercials about how SeaWorld is such an amazing place for marine life animals, yet what we do not know is that most of these animals have been held in captivity against their will. Just think about it, these animals’ are made to perform day in and day out for a huge crowd, yet we do not stop and think about what it would be like if we ourselves were held in captivity. Although awareness needs to be brought to this issue, it can make this situation a touchy subject. However, awareness does need to be brought to attention of people who support these amusement parks. The life of orca whales held in captivity are dangerous and have suffered a great amount of distress.

Documentation proves that Orcas are social creatures. In the wild they form lifelong communities, have their own unique dialect, and the calves stay with their pods forever (Blackfish). The Orca pod is committed to one another; they will stand by each other until their death. Not to mention, they will always help each other out if the need arises. The documentary, Blackfish, proves whales from different communities, subsets, and cultures are captured and forced to live with each other in tiny twenty by thirty feet deep concrete pens. Naturally, they do not get along and become annoyed, because they do not speak the same language or have the same genes, they are without a doubt different (Blackfish).Inside the pens, there is no room for them to move around let alone escape from each other. The result is always injury to the whales and in some cases death (Blackfish). Next, in the wild Orcas are free to eat whenever and whatever they want. However, in captivity, they have a regimented feeding schedule. In fact, food rewards good behavior. Knowing they are intelligent creatures, they are aware of food running low, or lack of food (Blackfish). Naturally, this causes them to refuse to listen to commands or want to continue to perfume. Instead of humans trying to understand them, their only reward, at this point, is punishment. Because of the whale not wanting to comply, they are isolated in small rectangular pools away from the others. Irrefutably, this further causes unneeded stress for the whale. There is no doubt; Orcas need to be in a stress free environment, the

Most people today have visited or at least heard of the popular tourist attraction, Seaworld. These tourists may think of it as a place to see marine animals do trick, like killer whales interacting with humans in a fun and entertaining way- but do we ever stop to think about the treatment or feelings of these creatures? After visiting Seaworld and seeing the famous Shamu, the thought of how living in captivity affects the animal had not crossed my mind. After researching I am now extremely concerned with the way these whales are impacted by spending their lives in bathtubs and forced to do tricks for food, all while humans are blindly funding this billion dollar business.

Killer Whales, otherwise known as Orcas, are not designed to be held in captivity. Over the past few years, we have seen an increase in Orca captivity, which also allows us to see a decrease in the quality of life in these animals. Within captivity, Orcas will experience a decline in mental health, limitations to it’s natural instincts as a wild animal, and in extreme cases, their behaviour will lead them to inflict harm or even kill their human companions.

Orcas are complex social creatures deserving freedom and respect, not captivity in theme parks under the guise of public education and entertainment. Aquarium staffs say captive whales are priceless educational tools. However, people can educate their children by bringing them to the wild instead of bringing the wild to them at the expense of the Orcas health and well-being. "The price of a family admission ticket is what continues to drive this cruel spectacle," according to Michael O' Sullivan, the Executive Director of The Humane Society of Canada (Whales in Captivity, 2010, Para. 3). Orcas suffer in many ways in

Orcas are also known as killer whales. Orcas have been around for many of years. They are the largest specie of the dolphin family. Most people recognize Orcas by being called “killer whales” and their color being black and white. Killer whales usually live up to 50 years old in the wild and a lot less in captive areas. Places such as Sea World have kept killer whales in captivity for many years. Although people enjoy the sight of the Orcas, we fail to see the harm it is causing them by keeping them in a secluded area. Are Killer Whales safer in confined spaces? Or should they be kept in their natural habitat? Being held captive limits their freedom and enjoyment of life and doesn’t allow them to be who they really are. Recent studies have shown that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) claims “To confine them in a space that is, at best, a tiny fraction of the size of their ocean home, depriving them of natural stimulation and social bonds, leads to boredom and, at worst, to poor

Everyone loves going to marine parks such as SeaWorld and Marineland. They offer many spectacular shows with dolphins, sea lions and birds. However, the main attractions they offer are orcas, or as they are better known as killer whales. Highly intelligent and with acute senses of sight and hearing, they are apex predators. Recently, the possession of orcas has been a big topic of controversy. Many people believe that the animals are being mistreated in captivity. Their captivity limits their freedom and enjoyment. Many orcas suffer from poor physical and mental effects in captivity. Killer whales will usually travel between 50 and 100 miles per day in the wild, but in captivity all they can do is swim in circles or float for no reason. In the wild, killer whales live in pods of

Introduction I am against whale captivity because I do not like how SeaWorld is treating the Orcas, dolphins, and other whales, but today I am going to talk about orcas in captivity. I think orcas should not be in captivity because the tanks are too small, they are taken away from their family, and they get injured. Reasons Reason

The argument that captivity is detrimental to the health and well-being of orcas is growing in popularity because of the indisputable scientific evidence that presents jarring differences in captive and free orcas. Naomi Rose, author of Killer Controversy, is a mammal scientist who explains the artificial habitat captive orcas survive in: “They are cooperative predators, whose home ranges are hundreds, if not thousands of square kilometers in size and who can and often do swim almost 200 kilometers in a day. When in captivity, they exist inside a comparatively small concrete enclosure, less than one ten-thousandth of normal habitat size” (Rose). Without adequate space to travel and live, captivity deprives orcas of the exercise wild orcas have, arguably leaving them with frustration and boredom. Supporters of orca captivity argue that amusement parks allow visitors to see orcas when otherwise unable to, in contrast, the environment in which orcas are held captive does not merely resemble their natural habitat and ultimately convince them into a life of solitude. David Kirby’s novel Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity, discusses the complexity of killer whales’ brains: “Orcas not only have the largest brain of any dolphin, at twelve pounds, it is four times larger than the human brain (a